Focus on Agriculture

MONTEREY COUNTY — A Monterey County program to ensure equity in the local commercial cannabis market is sputtering but will continue on a smaller scale. The county Board of Supervisors voted unanimously March 19 to continue the Growing Equity Together program, known as GET, despite...

After 30 years of making its own wine, Smith Family Wines will discontinue producing the Paraiso, Irie and Alexander-Smith labels and close the tasting room at the Paraiso Vineyards on Paraiso Springs Road in Soledad.

KING CITY — Monterey County Judge Rafael Vasquez has sentenced King City residents and farm labor contractors Elias Perez Jr., 43, and Alejandra Perez, 40, to three years in prison for insurance fraud committed between 2013 and 2017. Vasquez also suspended those prison sentences, placing...

CHUALAR — Monterey County has honored the last surviving Bracero of the 1963 Chualar train tragedy, recognizing his life story and the enduring legacy of Bracero workers during Bracero Worker History Recognition Week. During a special ceremony Sept. 16 at the Monterey County Board of...

KING CITY — Community Housing Improvement Systems and Planning Association Inc. (CHISPA) has received a $680,000 acquisition loan to purchase property in King City and create 40 affordable homes aimed toward farmworkers in the region. The funding is being made available through the Monterey Bay...

Farming is often thought of as a way of life and not just a job. Many California farm families have been living this life for generations — and they want to continue the legacy, growing crops, raising livestock and supporting the communities and people...

KING CITY — In a gathering that underscored the enduring spirit of innovation and generosity in California’s “Salad Bowl of the World,” David and Susan Gill of King City received the prestigious E.E. “Gene” Harden Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grower-Shipper Association of Central...

KING CITY — Hundreds of third graders from South Monterey County schools attended the 2025 South County Farm Day last month to learn all about agriculture. The annual enrichment program, sponsored by Monterey County Agricultural Education, gives an opportunity for youth to become familiar with...

Editor’s Note: The following profile is an excerpt from Amy Wu’s upcoming book, “From Farms to Incubators: Women Innovators Revolutionizing How Our Food is Grown,” which tells the stories of women entrepreneurs who are transforming agriculture through high technology. Claudia Pizarro-Villalobos was born and raised...